Today, software may be distributed over the Internet. If the software can be packaged in a small executable, a software vendor may choose to distribute the software over the Internet.
Once the software is downloaded, the user may share the downloaded software with a friend. Some Internet sites attempt to limit sharing of the software by requiring a user to be authenticated in some manner prior to obtaining access to the software. In some authentication systems, the user may need to be authenticated more than once to access the software. As the popularity of the software increases, however, so does the number of users seeking authentication.
These increased authentications may burden the authentication system. As the load on the authentication system increases, throughput tends to decrease, resulting in decreased enjoyment of the software access process by the user. This may in turn result in decreased purchases of the software. Therefore, there is a need in the industry for reducing load of an authentication system. Thus, it is with respect to these considerations and others that the present invention has been made.